• The idea of malinconia in the 19th c. covered a myriad of romantic notions, so to simply translate it as "melancholy" does the term...

• The idea of malinconia in the 19th c. covered a myriad of romantic notions, so to simply translate it as "melancholy" does the term injustice. • It subsumes many other emotional states as well - dejection, gloom, unknown sadness, desperation, depression and even frustration. Each language has evolved it's own terms, and interpretations differ from region to region. • Malinconia in sunny Italy or Spain is quite different from melancholy in Norway and in Finland, with their long, harsh winters. • The Nordic variant is expressed here in various musical examples.